Family Holiday Association

Get on your bike this December for FHA!

Taking place on December 17, the day before the CLIA Cruise Forum and Winter Ball 2019, participants will start their cycling challenge from the Southampton area, riding west towards De Vere Cotswolds Water Park Hotel in Gloucestershire, where the CLIA Cruise Forum and Winter Ball will be held.

Last years cycling hero's faced bumps, humps and driving rain but they all made us proud!

It’s been truly fantastic working with you all on our ‘What a Difference a Day Makes’ charity campaign. We thought you might like to hear an update on how the campaign is going and we wanted to share a heart-warming story of a family who have hugely benefited from a precious day out.

When CLIA and Family Holiday Association first partnered to create the ‘What a Difference a Day Makes’ campaign, our aim was to raise enough funds to send 250 struggling families on a day out to the British seaside or local tourist attraction.

And in December last year, CLIA announced that this target was not only hit, but through donations like yours we were able to completely knock it out of the park! Thanks to donations throughout the year and the fundraising activities, we were able to send over 330 families on a well-deserved break.

-------------------- Earlier in 2019 ------------------

Earlier this year, we organised a CLIA Charity Fun Run, where people were able to choose to run 5k or 10k. It was a fantastic success and a great way to kick off our fundraising efforts for this year. Thank you to those who took part and to those who supported the runners and FHA by donating.

June 17th marked ‘International Shades Day’, and to support FHA’s fundraising effort, those who attended the CLIA Conference could text to donate £5 or more.

Finally, we wanted to share a story of a family who benefited for a precious day out*.

“For one boy in particular, it was truly amazing to see what a powerful difference a day away and change in environment made for him. Earlier in the year, Jack experienced a significant trauma which completely turned his world upside down. Unsure of how to cope, Jack closed himself off from his family and friends. He didn’t say a single word for many months after the event and as a result stopped attending school. Understandably, this was an extremely distressing time for Jack’s family as they didn’t know how long it may take for Jack to start interacting with them again."

A health professional working closely with Jack referred him and his family to be part of the group trip to the Wildlife Park. This may be difficult to believe, but on arrival at the park he said to a member of staff “What does a lion look like?” These were the first words he had said in months, so you can imagine how ecstatic the family were to hear this. By the time Jack returned to thecoach at the end of the day, he was chatting and interacting with the other children which was such an amazing change to see in him.

He returned to school a few weeks after the trip for a slow integration and eventually worked up to staying the whole day. In a meeting with his doctor, she stated that the trip created a spontaneous recovery which can happen for those who suffer trauma. No-one expected one simple day out to have such a miraculous outcome.”

The funds you raise play such a vital role in enabling us to help more families like Jack’s. So from Family Holiday Association and CLIA, we want to say a huge THANK YOU! We truly appreciate your support.